Woman Loses Foot As Bomb Explodes

SOUTH PALM BEACH -- A Miami Beach woman lost a foot Thursday when a pipe bomb hidden under the dashboard of her car exploded as she turned on the ignition, police said.

Sharon Flaxman, 23, was taken to John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Atlantis after the 10:10 a.m. explosion. She is listed in fair condition. Witnesses said the woman`s right foot was severed in the blast.

Investigators said they do not know who planted the bomb in Flaxman`s Pontiac Firebird, which was parked outside the Palm Beach Harbor Club on 3545 S. Ocean Blvd.

Flaxman and her boyfriend, Manuel Villamanan, 22, had been staying in the Harbor Club apartment her parents own.

They were about to drive back to their apartment on exclusive Star Island in Miami Beach as Flaxman stepped into her car. It was parked in a space numbered 13. Villamanan, whose father owns the Ford Midway Mall auto dealership in Miami, planned to follow Flaxman in a rented Ford Tempo.

But when Flaxman turned the key, the bomb exploded and her car was engulfed in flames. Villamanan, who was next to Flaxman in the Tempo, said he pulled her from the car and carried her to safety.

The blast was audible three blocks away at the South Palm Beach police station.

``We heard this loud explosion and were here in a minute,`` said Officer Dale Fortney.

Fortney said Flaxman would have died if her sun roof had been closed.

Police Chief Stan Morse said he suspected the explosion was caused by a bomb, and called in the Sheriff`s Office Explosive Ordinance Detonation team to investigate.